Buro exclusive: Interview with Emily Weiss, CEO of Into The Gloss and beauty brand Glossier

From running a super successful website to having her own ultra-modern cosmetics brand, Emily Weiss is a one woman beauty revolution

Emily Weiss has an amazing story. She started out as a fashion assistant at Vogue with an affinity for beauty. Noting a gap in the market for a beauty blog with real substance — one that interviewed everyone from makeup artists to models — she created Into The Gloss five years ago, juggling two jobs until the site became so successful that it turned into her full-time gig.

Today, Into The Gloss remains a huge Internet success story that's read by millions of chic and in-the-know women each month. Following the success of the site, Weiss — who is all of 30 — started her own makeup and skincare brand, Glossier, in late 2014. Buro had an exclusive chat with Weiss, who is clearly a trendsetter when it comes to how women consume their beauty (both reporting- and products-wise).

Tell us more about your skincare and makeup brand Glossier. How and why did you make the leap from running a successful website to having your own beauty range?Creating Glossier was the natural step to take after years of success with Into The Gloss. Glossier is essentially the physical manifestation of everything we learn from our community of loyal readers and the amazing people we interview and collaborate with.

What is the concept behind Glossier and why do you call it not-so-basic skincare? Glossier creates skincare essentials — the products women reach for every day and always have a place on their 'top shelf'. We call them not-so-basic because they are incredibly intuitive and simple to use, yet made from highly effective, luxury ingredients. The gap we are filling is between quality and accessibility.

Who is the Glossier girl? Is she a millenial, a trendsetter, a faithful reader of Into The Gloss, a sophisticate or all of the above?Glossier girls have something cool to say. They are insecure some days, but are wildly confident on others. They have freckles, pores, scars. They are chic, fun, and smart. Glossier girls embrace wherever they're at.

Why did you choose to retail with Net-A-Porter and how does it feel to know Glossier can instantly reach millions of women in hundreds of countries?Net-A-Porter is an amazing platform for both brands and for consumers. Their edit is so thoughtful and shopping with them always feels like a luxurious experience, which is something we strive to deliver at Glossier. We are so excited to finally be able to offer our international fans a tiny bit of Glossier through this collaboration.

Do you think your products are universal? Or are they more for an urban girl living in the city?Of course! Glossier products are for everyone. They are easy to use, hard working, and fun. Anyone can be a Glossier girl.

What are your three personal favourite products and do you have unique or out-of-the-box ways in which we can use them?I love all the Glossier products, of course. But I do have a few tricks... I love to use the Balm Dotcom as a highlighter, dabbing a bit on my cheekbones and eyelids for a super soft, dewy glow. Our Moisturizing Moon Mask also doubles as a super moisturising treatment while you sleep — great to use after a long flight. And finally, I haven't personally tried this, but I know a lot of girls like to use the Perfecting Skin Tint in a shade or two darker than their shade as a contouring product. It creates these very light, glow-y shadows that are super flattering and never harsh.

We love the packaging that looks almost like a super-chic, drugstore product because of its minimalist design. What was the concept behind that and how involved were you in the process?I am very close to the development of both our products and our packaging — it's something I am very passionate about. For us, we wanted the package design to reflect our edited approach to product development, life... everything.

What are the dream products you would love to create as the brand expands?We have several products coming out in 2016 that I am over the moon for. One of them is our cleanser, which will be Glossier's first truly crowdsourced product. It was developed from feedback from hundreds of Into The Gloss readers and Glossier customers, and the end result is the face wash to end all face washes. I could not be more excited for that launch.

our cleanser will be Glossier's first truly crowdsourced product. It was developed from feedback from hundreds of Into The Gloss readers and Glossier customers, and the end result is the face wash to end all face washes.

Who are your personal beauty idols?Stylist Kate Young is such a pro, and I am always learning about new products and tricks from her. We've interviewed her twice for Into The Gloss and she was recently part of Glossier's 'Top Shelf Live' panel we hosted in New York.

What is your favourite part about running Into The Gloss as well as Glossier?My favorite part is hands down watching this team of amazing, creative people I've assembled create and grow the Glossier brand. They are all so talented and passionate, it is truly inspirational to be a part of. It's the first time I've ever really had a team, and it's been such a learning experience for me enabling them to do their best work and then setting them free to create essentially.

If you're able to, share with us your personal favourite beauty picks?The Glossier Phase 1 Set is the backbone of my beauty routine, and often I don't reach for much else. But some of my other go-tos are Christophe Robin Cleansing Purifying Scrub with Sea Salt, Le Labo Santal 33 Solid Perfume, and Kevin Aucoin The Volume Mascara.

Selected Glossier products are available at Net-A-Porter.com. Special thanks to Net-A-Porter for arranging this interview.